Lenovo’s latest entry-level warrior, the Vibe K5 Note, started selling two weeks ago and going by initial user reviews, the phone ticks all boxes except one – camera.
The device has been found to be acceptable or good in all respects such as performance and display, but the camera been variously described as poor, terrible, below average etc..
Other than that, the only two areas of some concern are occasional reports on poor battery life (which can apparently be fixed) and a slight ‘heating problem’ on data use.
On the positive side, the phone’s looks are above average and its performance is decent. 
Display quality has been found to be average.
Overall, therefore, the Lenovo Vibe K5 gets a score of around 3.5 out of five stars.
NOT-SO-GREAT CAMERA
Camera quality has been an issue not just in entry-level phones, but even in mid-range devices like Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 3 and Le 1s.
The Vibe K5, unlike last year’s models like A6000 Plus, comes with 13+5 MP cameras, which look good on paper. But going by users’ experience, don’t live up to the specs in actual performance.
In fact, poor cameras were also the main complaints with Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and LeEco Le 1s, which are priced about 70% higher than the K5. So, it’s perhaps not surprising that this model suffers from the same problem.
However, some entry level models, such as Xiaomi’s Redmi models (not the Note) have been reported to have decent cameras even at entry-level prices.
The following user echoed the sentiments of many: “Coming to the Main point CAMERA,” said Sivakumar, who said he wanted to return the model because of the issue. “It’s tooooooooo worst (sic) This is the major negative problem which will give total negative impression of all positive impression on the phone. Both rare (rear) n front camera was very bad.”
REST IS OK
But Sivakumar, who rated the phone 3 out of 5, had good things to say about the phone, including on looks, display and performance.
The Lenovo K5 is the only model in India to come with Snapdragon’s first octa-core mid-range chipset, the SD 415, and holds the promise of a decent performance without depleting the battery like SD 615.
“Phone looks very Good n Best in this range,” he said. “Phone display resolution was also good which was having 1280*720 and 420 nits display. Which was producing good screen color reproduction. Performance was not bad n too good but at this price range it’s great to have snapdragon 1.4ghz octacore processor.”
On the display front, some users were impressed, while others less so. It should be remembered that unlike models like Swipe Elite Plus, which is also priced Rs 6,999, the Lenovo Vibe K5 does not have a full-HD screen. If you want the full-HD version of the model, you have to buy the ‘Plus’ version by adding another Rs 1,000 to the bill (But there are problems with that as well. The Plus version does not support Voice over LTE (4G voice).
The display, therefore, will not look as crisp and expensive as that of the Swipe Elite Plus. Howver, it will definitely not look cheap. Since the screen size is only 5 inches, even a 720p resolution gives a decent experience.
Some users, however, still missed the quality of a full-HD display.
Another key point to note about the K5 is that it’s got a decent sized battery (2.75 Ah) and an efficient processor. Still some users had difficulty getting through the entire day on a single charge.
One user, Divaksh, has a suggestion to make on this front. “Very big and slim removable 2750mAH lithium-ion battery but to make the most of it, you will have to use greenify app and uninstall the apps you don’t use and if apps are not removable then disable them otherwise battery backup is not good.”
OUR RECOMMENDATION
If you care a lot about the photos you take on your phones — or display quality is very important to you — then we recommend that you also look at other options like Swipe Elite Plus. If you want good battery life as well, look at Redmi Note 3 or Le 2 or Meizu Note 3. On the other hand, if the main purpose of your phone is going to be to make calls, a bit of browsing, video and messaging, for the Lenovo Vibe K5 as it comes with support for 4G voice calling and so on. The phone is available on demand from Amazon.
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